Ramblemuse^SM Annotated General Bibliography

Writing for nonprofits is a juggling act. One's job might entail writing grant proposals, newsletters, thank-you notes, case statements, and Web-site material--each for a different boss. The most successful development writers take the time to both experience their causes firsthand (sleep in the shelter, go to rehearsals, visit the wilderness) and cultivate personal relationships with their donors ("people give to people"). You'll give yourself an amazing head start when applying for a grant, say Joseph Barbato and Danielle Furlich, just by following an organization's guidelines and getting your math right--it's surprising how many fundraisers do neither. Make your point once, clearly, and don't forget the human element. "You aren't just asking for money," say the authors of "Writing for a Good Cause", "you are asking to help people." Barbato and Furlich, both veteran fundraisers, interviewed both grants administrators and development writers for this guide. The result is an inside view of the arcane workings of the world of fundraising that would make any novice feel more proficient immediately.

Science writers are translators of sorts: they transform the jargon-laden language and arcane concepts of the science world into something the rest of us can understand and even appreciate. For this, they must be able to comprehend (and assess the value of) the science at hand, then simplify, calling into action whatever metaphor and analogy they can find to get the idea across. For this indispensable guidebook, 39 committed and enthusiastic science writers chime in about what their jobs entail. Among them are newspaper reporters, magazine and journal contributors, book authors, and freelance, editorial, and op-ed writers. Specialists relate the intricacies of covering topics such as infectious diseases, neuroscience, the environment, and technology. A final section explores science-writing jobs for colleges and universities, government agencies, museums, and industry.

The Web has developed its own set of rules and attitudes for writing hard-hitting marketing copy. Robert Bly's "The Online Copywriter's Handbook" is the first practical and authoritative guide to what exactly those rules are and how they differ from writing for print audiences. From novices just taking their first copywriting steps to veterans looking to add impact and results to their online efforts, it covers everything from general fundamentals of writing effective copy to specific Web copywriting tips and traps.

Rare is the style guide that a person--even a word person--would want to read cover to cover. But “The Economist Style Guide”, designed, as the book says, to promote good writing, is so witty and rigorous as to be irresistible. The book consists of three parts. The first is the “Economist”'s style book, which acts as a position paper of sorts in favor of clear, concise, correct usage. Part 2 of the book describes many of the spelling, grammar, and usage differences between British and American English. While many Briticisms are familiar to most Americans and vice versa, there are some words--such as "homely", "bomb", and "table"--that take on quite different meanings altogether when they cross the Atlantic. And part 3 offers a handy reference to such information as common business abbreviations, accountancy ratios, the Beaufort Scale, commodity-trade classifications, currencies, laws, measures, and stock-market indices. The U. S. reader should be aware (but not scared off by the fact) that some of the style issues addressed are specifically British.

Whether you're just starting out, considering going full-time, or are already a successful freelance writer, you'll find the information and insights needed to take your work to the next level in this smart, thorough guide. Compiled by the prestigious American Society of Journalists and Authors, the book's twenty-six chapters cover the business from every angle, tackling the topics every freelancer needs to master in order to make it today. Chapters cover: planning a writing business, generating fresh ideas, the secrets of a successful magazine query, the latest research tools and techniques, writing for the Web, developing areas of specialization, promoting yourself and your work, op-eds, essays, and other ways to leverage your knowledge, contracts, taxes and deductions, working with editors and agents, going full-time, key lessons you won't have to learn the hard way, and more. Written by twenty-six of the top freelancers working today, this indispensable guide provides trade secrets that others have learned the hard way, inspiration to take your work where you want it to go, and a revealing view into the minds and working habits of freelance writers at the top of their game.

Whether you're a student struggling through Composition 101 or a professional writer on a quest for perfection, "The Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law" is always ready to fill the role of trusted advisor to your creative genius. Revised and updated in 2000, this version contains a 40-page section on media law, guides for punctuation and bibliographies, and specialized glossaries for business and sports writing, all in addition to its 280-page generalized stylebook.

Ideas into Words enables the reader to BE a writer and to DO science writing.

In "How to Write a Book" Robert F. Mager's focus is not on how to write but on how to organize your effort to result in a book. He show's how to begin, how to keep yourseelf from quitting, and how to handle the major writing traps. He offers a procedure for shaping your book into one that has the effect you want it to have on your readers.

"Before and After" magazine's focus on clarity and simplicity and its insistence on approaching design not as mere decoration but as an essential form of communication have won it legions of fans. If you're among them, you'll welcome the first book from B and A's founder and publisher. John McWade walks his own talk, bringing you a beautifully clear, cohesive, and elegant primer on page design. You'll learn by example how to design single-page and multi-page publications, brochures, and advertisements, applying the principles design professionals live by. You'll also learn how to choose the right font for your project, why one typeface works better than another, and lots more. Best of all, you'll discover how to think visually--transforming the images in your head into documents that communicate effectively on the page.

This comprehensive book covers everything an aspiring interviewer needs to know from developing listening and observation skills to conducting interviews by electronic mail and surfing the Internet for story ideas. "Creative Interviewing" aids readers by using examples and anecdotal accounts of actual professional experiences. Readers are provided with step-by-step instructions on how to prepare for and conduct a strong interview, how to obtain dramatic anecdotes from sources, how to build conversational rapport, how to conduct interviews for broadcast, and how to cope with the dynamics of a series of interviews on a certain topic. For any professional who wishes to improve their interviewing skills.

Considering a career in freelance writing? Already a freelancer but seeking practical, solid advice on the basics of the business? "Get a Freelance Life" is the complete guide to all aspects of a freelance writing career, straight from the creators of mediabistro. com — the nation’s most connected, authoritative source for media professionals. Learn how to: write compelling pitch letter, network with the best in the magazine and newspaper industry, understand the freelance market and detect its changes, self-edit and rewrite your work, manage tight deadlines, negotiate contracts, and survive the financial ups and downs of the freelance life. With plenty of insider advice and tips from the most successful freelance writers and editors in the country, "Get a Freelance Life" is a must-have resource for turning your freelance gigs into a full-fledged writing career.

It's meant for high schoolers, but adults who haven't inhaled chalk dust for years might appreciate it even more. The process of organizing, researching and writing a paper is laid is out in easy-to-understand normal-speak. The chapters on grammar and usage are very user-friendly, and lots of extras (suffixes, parliamentary procedure, periodic table, metric system, the U. S. Constitution, world maps, etc. ) make this an extraordinarily popular and useful household item. If you're feeling generous, you might even let the kid take it to school on occasion.

Gerald M. Weinberg -- author of more than forty books and more than 400 articles over a forty-year career -- reveals his secrets for gathering, organizing, and discarding writing ideas. Drawing an analogy to the stone-by-stone method of building fieldstone walls, Weinberg shows writers how to construct fiction and nonfiction manuscripts from key insights, stories, and quotes. The elements, or stones, are collected nonsequentially, over time, and eventually find logical places in larger pieces. The method renders writer's block irrelevant and has proved effective for scores of Weinberg's writing class students, who have collectively published more than 100 books. If you've ever wanted to write a book or article -- or need a fresh approach to your writing career -- try what works for Weinberg and gather your best ideas into beautiful stone walls. Gerald M. Weinberg is one of the most influential thinkers in computer science. Weinberg on Writing isn't a computer book, though -- Weinberg describes his life and practices as a writer, enriching the text with more than 40 exercises appropriate for individual or group study. Inducted into the Computer Hall of Fame in its inaugural year (in the same class as Bill Gates), Weinberg's career highlights have included computer programming at IBM for Project Mercury (which put the first American in space), serving on the faculty of famed family therapist Virginia Satir, consulting for Fortune 500 companies through his firm, Weinberg & Weinberg, and teaching thousands of technical professionals how to improve their communication skills.